Food Insecurity In The U.S.

 

Washington Post: A mile-long line for free food offers a warning as covid benefits end 

HAZEL GREEN, Ky. — As he claimed the first spot in a mile-long line for free food in the Appalachian foothills, Danny Blair vividly recalled receiving the letter announcing that his pandemic-era benefit to help buy groceries was about to be slashed. 

Kentucky lawmakers had voted to end the state’s health emergency last spring, by default cutting food stamp benefits created to help vulnerable Americans like Blair weather the worst of covid-19. Instead of $200 a month, he would get just $30.

 He crumpled up the letter and threw it on the floor of his camper. “I thought, ‘Wow, the government is trying to kill us now,’” said Blair, 63, who survives on his Social Security disability check and lives in a mobile home with his wife after their house burned down five years ago. “They are going to starve us out.” 

Blair and his wife hop into their truck twice a month at 4 a.m. to ensure they get a few staples at the Hazel Green Food Project’s giveaway. On a recent Friday, they waited nine hours until local prisoners on work duty started loading bags of meat and vegetables, potato chips and cookies into vehicles in one of the nation’s most impoverished communities.  

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WNU Editor: The US is not alone. Food insecurity is becoming a bigger and more pressing crisis for almost every country in the world. There are many reasons for this, but IMHO inflation is creating a life affordability crisis for the globe, and with most governments facing debt levels that only keep growing, limiting their options to help.

On a side note. For me it is strange to watch people spending hours waiting in line for food in large pick-up trucks.

Iran Is Facing A Food Crisis

The head of one hospital said: "In the coming weeks, it will be impossible for many public or private medical centers to provide hot meals, especially protein-rich foods, to hospitalized patients because this increase in food prices was not seen in any hospital budget." (file photo)  

RFE: Iranian Institutions Facing Food Shortages As Prices Skyrocket 

Local media in Iran say public institutions such as hospital, prisons, and child-care centers are facing possible food shortages due to skyrocketing prices. 

The Tehran-based Etemad newspaper reported on June 15 that the impending "problem" could hit in "the coming weeks" and that "food supplies will be disrupted not only in hospitals but also in other government facilities such as barracks, prisons, nursing homes, and even student dormitories." 

Etemad quoted the head of a private hospital as saying that a sharp rise in food prices has affected the quality of hospital food to such an extent that freshly made items are likely to be eliminated in public and private hospitals, with packaged foods being used instead.  

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Update: Iranian Food Consumption Plummets As Prices Soar (OilPrice.com/RFE)  

WNU Editor: This is a recipe for widespread unrest.

African Leaders Say ‘We Don’t Have Food’

The town of Djibo in Burkina Faso has been at the epicentre of the violence linked to al-Qaeda and the ISIL group that has killed thousands and displaced nearly two million people [File: Sam Mednick/AP Photo] 

Al Jazeera/AP: ‘We don’t have food’: Africa’s growing humanitarian crisis 

Leaders urge increased mobilisation to resolve a crisis that has left more than 280 million suffering from malnourishment. 

African leaders gathered for a summit Friday in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, to address growing humanitarian needs on the continent, which is also facing increased violent activity, climate change challenges and a run of military coups. 

 Leaders called for increased mobilisation to resolve a humanitarian crisis that has left millions displaced and more than 280 million suffering from malnourishment.  

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WNU Editor: Just in the Sahel region of Africa millions are facing starvation .... 18 million in Africa’s Sahel on ‘the brink of starvation’ (UN News). The Russian - Ukraine war is being blamed for worsening this crisis .... Russia war will have 'shattering' effect on food shortages in Africa: 'you're going to see governments fall' (FOX News), but the food crisis in Africa has been an ongoing crisis long before the Ukraine war started.

African Food Prices Soaring Raising Fears Of Starvation And Unrest

DW: African food prices soaring amid Ukraine war 

The war in Ukraine is having a drastic impact on Africa. Prices for wheat, gas and gasoline are at record highs. Crisis regions could see things get worse than they already are. 

Every morning, the operators of a small kiosk located in an informal neighborhood in Kenya's capital, Nairobi, bake fresh chapati — a popular flatbread. 

Chapatis usually cost around 20 shillings (€0.17/$0.17). However, customers can hardly afford it anymore. "Chapati costs twice as much now. Life has become extremely expensive," one customer at the kiosk complained. 

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WNU Editor: Grim warnings that this food crisis will be creating the next refugee/migrant crisis .... Salvini Warns Food Shortages Could Cause 20 Million African Migrants to Enter Europe (Summit News).

Citing A Damaging Heat Wave On Crops India Bans Wheat Exports

CNN/Reuters: India bans wheat exports as heat wave hurts crop, domestic prices soar 

MumbaiIndia banned wheat exports on Saturday — days after saying it was targeting record shipments this year — as a scorching heat wave curtailed output and domestic prices hit a record high. 

The government said it would still allow exports backed by already issued letters of credit and to countries that request supplies "to meet their food security needs." 

The move to ban overseas shipments was not in perpetuity and could be revised, senior government officials told a press conference.  

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WNU Editor: India is the world's second largest wheat producer. This ban is going to drive global wheat prices even more. 

Update: There will be some exemptions from this ban .... India open to exporting wheat to needy nations despite ban (AP). 

 Citing A Damaging Heat Wave On Crops India Bans Wheat Exports  

World's Food Problems Piling Up as India Restricts Wheat Exports -- Bloomberg  

India bans wheat exports to try and tame prices as a scorching heatwave curtailed output -- CNBC  

India, second-largest wheat producer, bans exports amid food supply concerns -- FOX News  

India bans wheat exports, cites food security and soaring prices -- Al Jazeera  

Wheat Prices Soar As India Restricts Exports -- Zero Hedge

Where Will The Food Riots Start?

A Tunisian protester holds a baguette while taking to riot police in January 2011. Martin Bureau/AFP  

Zero Hedge: Where Will The Food Riots Start? 

Global food prices have never risen so fast and have never been so high, and as have detailed multiple times in recent months (as this is not simply a one-month, 'blame it on Putin' crisis), most recently here, the pieces are in place for some serious tears to form in the social fabric of many nations. 

While food prices may be generally seen as an emerging market problem, they will have an effect on developed markets too, something we will see in the upcoming French election.  

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WNU Editor: This will not help .... Shocking Estimates Show Ukraine's Crop Harvest Could Be Halved (Zero Hedge).

Is The U.S. Food Supply Under Pressure?

 

Wall Street Journal: U.S. Food Supply Is Under Pressure, From Plants to Store Shelves 

The U.S. food system is under renewed strain as Covid-19’s Omicron variant stretches workforces from processing plants to grocery stores, leaving gaps on supermarket shelves.

In Arizona, one in 10 processing plant and distribution workers at a major produce company were recently out sick. In Massachusetts, employee illnesses have slowed the flow of fish to supermarkets and restaurants. A grocery chain in the U.S. Southeast had to hire temporary workers after roughly one-third of employees at its distribution centers fell ill. 

Food-industry executives and analysts warn that the situation could persist for weeks or months, even as the current wave of Covid-19 infections eases. Recent virus-related absences among workers have added to continuing supply and transportation disruptions, keeping some foods scarce.  

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WNU Editor: The U.S. is not the only country whose food supply is under pressure .... Stability uncertain after global food prices surge 28% in 2021 (Successful Farming).

Food Shortages Are The Next Supply-Chain Crunch

Bloomberg: ‘People Are Hoarding’: Food Shortages Are The Next Supply-Chain Crunch 

(Bloomberg) -- In Denver, public-school children are facing shortages of milk. In Chicago, a local market is running short of canned goods and boxed items. 

But there’s plenty of food. There just isn’t always enough processing and transportation capacity to meet rising demand as the economy revs up. 

More than a year and a half after the coronavirus pandemic upended daily life, the supply of basic goods at U.S. grocery stores and restaurants is once again falling victim to intermittent shortages and delays. 

 “I never imagined that we’d be here in October 2021 talking about supply-chain problems, but it’s a reality,” said Vivek Sankaran, chief executive officer of Albertsons Cos., who echoed the laments of other retailers. “Any given day, you’re going to have something missing in our stores, and it’s across categories.”  

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WNU Editor: At the start of the pandemic a number of people asked me on what they should invest in. 

I said precious metals, products that preppers like to have, essential household products, and on the top of my list .... food. 

18 months later I am still doing the same thing, and I have no regrets.

Global Food Prices Are Soaring

OilPrice.com: Global Food Prices Are Soaring Amid Energy Crunch 

Rising energy costs have added to the supply chain disruption and crop failures to worsen an already dire situation with global food prices, Bloomberg has reported, citing data from the UN. 

According to the data, the global food index UN compiles has risen by a third over the past 12 months and could continue upward as energy costs soar due to tight supplies and strong demand. 

“It’s this combination of things that’s beginning to get very worrying,” said Abdolreza Abbassian, senior economist at the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization, as quoted by Bloomberg.  

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More News On Global Food Prices Soaring  

World food prices hit 10-year peak -FAO -- Reuters  

Food Inflation Heats Up and Energy Crisis May Make It Worse -- Bloomberg  

Global Food Prices Hit Fresh Decade High -- Zero Hedge

Venezuela's Food Chain Has Broken

With domestic production of food hobbled, Venezuela relies on food imports, which make up 85% of the food supply. A market in Maracaibo. Photo: Luis Bravo/Agence France-Presse  

WSJ: Venezuela’s Food Chain Is Breaking, and Millions Go Hungry  

A report found 13% of children under 5 are stunted; oil-rich nation is ‘on the edge of an irreversible catastrophe’ 

Ana Nuñez, a 62-year-old retired municipal worker in western Venezuela, says her meals often consist of just a few corn-flour pancakes, known as arepas. 

Even when she has money to buy groceries in the city of Maracaibo’s teeming flea market, she said that “instead of quality food they sell garbage, like animal hides and rotten cheese.” 

A widespread scarcity of gasoline is the latest blow to domestic food production in Venezuela, preventing goods from getting to market and farmers from filling up their tractors. Food production in this oil-rich nation, led by its socialist president, Nicolas Maduro, had already been hobbled by shortages of seeds and agrochemicals, price controls that made raising crops unprofitable and government seizures of farms and food-processing plants. 

Venezuelans aren’t the only ones going hungry. Across Latin America the economic blow caused by the Covid-19 pandemic has thrown millions out of work and into poverty. 

From Mexico City to Santiago, people are skipping meals, lining up at soup kitchens and begging, United Nations agencies say. 

But conditions in Venezuela, which even before the pandemic was suffering the worst economic meltdown in its history, are by far the most dire.  

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WNU Editor: I still have one contact in Caracus who has been feeding me info for years on what is happening in Venezuela. He mentioned to me during the summer that the availability of food was now only to those who can afford it and/or to those in government. And Venezuela is not the only one facing this crisis (albeit it is the worst one in the hemisphere). Central and South America along with a few Caribbean countries are now facing a humanitarian food crisis that is unprecedented in modern times .... No Meat, No Milk, No Bread, hunger CRisis Rocks Latin America (Bloomberg). More here .... Global Food Shortages Are Becoming Very Real, And US Grocery Store Chains Are Preparing For Worst Case Scenarios (Zero Hedge).

Is China About To Face A Major Food Crisis?

Forbes: China Food Crisis? Rising Domestic Prices And Large Import Purchases Send A Signal

Rising demand, floods, insect infestations, and rumors of spoiled inventories are all contributing to China’s developing food related woes.

China has a food problem. To a nation whose leaders are old enough to have been directly impacted by The Great Famine, the seriousness of food shortages cannot be overestimated. China’s burgeoning population, growing industrial economy, and expanding culture of consumerism are all contributing to a steady rise in demand for agricultural products.

But agricultural production, lest anyone forget, is subject to the biblical forces of floods, fire, pestilence, and a host of other variables, some of which are right now upsetting China’s delicate food stability. The world’s most populous nation will certainly not run out of food, but prices are rising and hints of tightening supplies are beginning to appear. Things may get worse before they get better.

Three headline issues are challenging China right now: floods, pestilence, and inventory problems.

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WNU Editor: The Chinese government is telling its citizens to not worry .... Agriculture Minister: There will be no food crisis in China (CGTN). But my friends in China have been telling me all summer on how expensive food has become. So is there a food crisis in China? I trust my friends far more than I trust Beijing.

UN Warns World Faces Worst Food Crisis In 50 Years

Zero Hedge: "We Need To Act Now" - UN Warns World Faces Worst Food Crisis In 50 Years

The world has entered a critical period, as depression unfolds, a virus pandemic rages, socio-economic chaos will flourish to unmanageable levels for governments and central banks.

UN secretary-general, Antonio Guterres, warned Tuesday that the world is on the brink of the worst food crisis ever witnessed in the post-World War II era.

Guterres said the virus pandemic could push more than 50 million into instant poverty, further saying countries must act now to shore up food security or risk imminent crisis:

"Unless immediate action is taken, it is increasingly clear that there is an impending global food emergency that could have long term impacts on hundreds of millions of children and adults," he said in a video message on Tuesday. "We need to act now to avoid the worst impacts of our efforts to control the pandemic."

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WNU Editor: Just learned from my sources in China that due to the pandemic early this year much their grain crop has failed this year. I have found no confirmation of this story from the media, but if true it will have a significant impact on all food products.

The Global Price For Rice Is Up 70% In 2020

Zero Hedge: The Price Of Half The World's Staple Food Is Up 70% In 2020

First the good news: after soaring to record highs one month ago due to widespread shutdowns of meat processing plants and supply chain impairments, wholesale beef prices have tumbled sharply and are just barely higher than where they were before the coronavirus pandemic struck.

Now the not so good news: as Bank of America's Michael Hartnett notes in his Flow Show today, while beef may be affordable again, rice - the staple food for half of world's population - is becoming increasingly unaffordable, "surging 70% since Jan on COVID-19 labor supply chain hit & stockpiling."

Read more ....

Update: Agriculture markets eye normality as countries ease export restrictions (Global Platts)

WNU Editor: Rice is a food staple for half the world. Massive price increases like this hurt everyone.

Covid-19 Coronavirus Pandemic Impacting Canada's Meat Supplies

CTV News: COVID-19 to have 'immediate and drastic' impact on Canadian meat supply: industry group

TORONTO -- Some of North America’s largest meat producers have been forced to close their plants or reduce production amid the spread of the novel coronavirus, prompting industry leaders to warn of “immediate and drastic” effects on Canada’s supply chain.

Beef processing capabilities have been reduced at a number of facilities in Canada and the U.S., including a temporary reduction at a Cargill meat plant in High River, Alta., where dozens of employees have tested positive for COVID-19.

“This single facility represents just over one-third of Canada’s total processing capability, so the impacts to the Canadian beef industry are expected to be immediate and drastic,” Michelle McMullen, communications manager at the Canadian Cattlemen’s Association (CCA), told CTVNews.ca by email Monday.

Read more ....

Update: Canadian Meat Industry Warns Of "Immediate And Drastic" Impact To Supply (Zero Hedge)

WNU Editor: I always follow trends in food supply and prices because they always give me an indication on national and geopolitical trends. In the case of Canada where I am presently isolated in my chalet, I am already seeing food inflation and some shortages at the town's supermarket . But Canada is one of the lucky countries, where the supply chain is resilient and heavily supported by the government. This is not the case for other countries, particularly in the developing world. Here is an easy prediction. This can only get worse, especially if this year's farm season is disrupted.

The People Responsible For The World's Food Supply Are Starting To Get Sick

Zero Hedge: Don't Look Now But The People Responsible For The World's Food Supply Are Starting To Get Sick

Sanderson Farms, a large poultry manufacturer and Smithfield Foods, the world's largest pork producer, have both reported their first couple of positive cases of coronavirus.

This raises the obvious question: what happens when people critical to the world's food supply start to fall ill?

As of now, there has been no such disruption - but it is beginning to morph into a massive threat, Bloomberg notes, with workers in close quarters preparing and processing food globally. Aside from the obvious threat of food not making it to consumers, things like fruits may also wind up rotting in fields if there aren't enough workers to pick and cultivate them.

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WNU Editor: The world's richest nations will make sure that their supply chains for food will function normally. Heaven help the rest of the world who are too poor to make such a guarantee.

What Will Happen To Our Food In A Crisis?

Elisabeth Braw, Defense One: Let’s Talk about Food — and What Happens In a Crisis

Sweden is telling its citizens to be ready to feed themselves for a week. Other nations should follow suit.

This week, Sweden presented a civil-defense brochure to be sent to the nation’s 4.8 million households. Called “If the Crisis or War Comes,” the 20-page brochure provides practical instructions, ranging from the signals that will sound in case of a national emergency, how to detect disinformation, how to get on without access to heating, fuel, the internet, medications, or public transport. It also explains to Swedes how to plan for food disruptions, and issues this sobering directive: every able-bodied resident will be expected to fend for him- or herself for seven days.

Stockholm is blazing a trail that other governments should follow. To an extent that we don’t sufficiently discuss, the developed world is extremely dependent on long food supply chains that are vulnerable to disruptions. So let’s talk about food.

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WNU Editor: I consider myself lucky. My father survived the Ukraine famine 1932-1933, and my mother survived the winter of 1942 when the German and Soviet armies were pounding at each other just a few miles from where she and the family were hiding. They taught both my brother and I on why it is prudent to always be stocked-up with provisions that will last a few months, and enough water for 1 - 2 months .... or at least have access to a well. The alternative .... as they told me .... is not an option. It is a life philosophy that both my brother and I have embraced. Kudos to the Swedes for at least educating their citizens to stock up on provisions for at least a week .... maybe ten percent of the population will do something about it.

There Are 14 'Choke-Points' That Can Threaten The World's Food Supply

Yasmeen Serhan, The Atlantic: Vulnerable 'Chokepoints' Threaten Global Food Security, Experts Warn

Chatham House analysts say climate change could affect 14 key transportation routes.

More than a dozen supply chains and trade routes that facilitate global food trade are vulnerable to unforeseen crises or climate change, according to a new report.

Analysts at Chatham House, the U.K.-based think tank, released a report Tuesday identifying 14 critical junctures, or “chokepoints,” through which large volumes of global food trade pass that could be vulnerable to major disruption if they are not properly maintained—an issue that could adversely affect global food supply and prices. The report found that the weak and aging infrastructure of these chokepoints are not equipped to cope with natural disasters, which could occur with more frequency as the planet warms.

Read more ....

More News On The 14 'Choke-Points' That Can Threaten The World's Food Supply

World food security risks growing, Chatham House says -- BBC
At food trading 'chokepoints', climate change could disrupt supplies - report -- Reuters
Vulnerable ‘chokepoints’ threaten global food supply, warns report -- The Guardian
Trade chokepoints risk food price surge -- Financial Times
World food supplies at risk as climate change threatens international trade, warn experts -- The Independent
GCC exposed to food security risks from maritime choke points -- The National

Can The World Feed Itself In The Future?

This Terrifying Chart Shows We’re Not Growing Enough Food To Feed The World -- Washington Post

It’s a question that keeps crop scientists up at night: How are we possibly going to feed the world over the next few decades?

After all, consider what we’re up against: The global population is expected to swell from 7 billion today to 9.6 billion by 2050. The rising middle class in China and India is eating more meat than ever. And this is all happening at a time when we’re setting aside a greater slice of farmland for biofuels and trying not to cut down any more forests (which exacerbates climate change). Doing this in a sustainable manner is tricky.

In theory, there’s a simple solution here: The world’s farmers will just need to get better at squeezing more productivity out of existing farmland. Crop yields have been steadily improving since the advent of synthetic fertilizer and modern agricultural techniques. So those yields will just need to keep improving in the years to come.

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My Comment: If not .... expect wars, mass migration, and chaos.

World Food Prices To Increase As The Worst Drought In Decades Hits The American Heartland

Worst Drought In Decades In The American Heartlands Threatens To Put Farmers Out Of Business -- The Telegraph

The worst drought in decades in the American heartlands threatens to put farmers out of business - and force up food prices across the world.

The fields on Eddie Melton's farm in the rolling terrain of western Kentucky should be covered by a thick green quilt of eight-feet high corn stalks at this time of year.

Instead, withered brown plants, barely half that height, are straggling out of the barren soil. The sorry landscape, repeated in states across the American heartlands, is testimony to the worst drought to strike the region for more than half a century "This drought has already devastated the corn crop," said Mr Melton, who farms 1,500 acres settled by his great-great-grandfather in the late 19th century. "We're just praying for some rain to save the soybeans."

The US agriculture department last week designated 1,297 counties across 29 of the 48 mainland states as "primary natural disaster areas".

Read more ....

Update: America's corn farmers high and dry as hope withers with their harvest -- The Guardian

My Comment: If this drought continues and starts to impact the other crops .... expect worldwide inflation on basic food stuffs .... and yes .... unstable societies and widespread unrest.

Current Drought Map For The United States

(Click on Image to Enlarge)

My Comment: This is bad. Expect inflation in our grocery bags this fall.

Hat Tip: Political Commentator